


Of Dares, Ghosts, and Monsters!!!

by OhMe-OhMy (DeathsLastPrayer)



Series: The Wonderful World of Puberty [6]
Category: Katekyou Hitman Reborn!
Genre: And "Truth or Dare", And Ghosts!, But mostly Tsuna and Enma being adorkable, Fluff, M/M, So much friggin' fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-04
Updated: 2015-10-04
Packaged: 2018-04-24 18:01:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4929649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeathsLastPrayer/pseuds/OhMe-OhMy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In Which: Tsuna befriends Enma because they're a lot a like and not so much all at the same time.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of Dares, Ghosts, and Monsters!!!

**Author's Note:**

>   
> **Age:** Tsuna and Enma are 14 in the first half; Tsuna and Enma are 16 in the second half

* * *

**I.**

* * *

  


Entering high school, Tsuna knew that he would see an array of people that he hadn't encountered whilst in grade or middle school. Something about the prospect of meeting new people made him anxious. He never understood it but most people weren't prone to simply liking him from the get go. He was an easy target for bullies, the laughingstock of any given class due to how clumsy he tended to be, and (with his luck) he almost never knew a single person in any of his classes. 

He was just thankful that some of his closest friends were at the same high school as him and, because of that, he didn't feel as alone or awkward when he thought about his life as a high school student. 

Still... knowing what he knew about himself, Tsuna was surprised when (despite his social anxieties) he discovered that there was one person in the foreign, new space that he felt the need to befriend by any means necessary. 

Maybe it was the fact that the boy was as devastatingly clumsy and just as absentminded as he himself tended to be. 

Maybe it was because he'd noticed that they shared bullies. Or because they both lied about the wounds they received from said bullies. 

Perhaps it was even that Tsuna just _felt_ that they needed to meet one another- they had to be friends because they understood each other without ever formally meeting. 

Everything inside of Tsuna yearned for him to wipe such an anguished look off of that boy's face because no one deserved to look so… so alone. 

Tsuna would like to believe that he was the first one to really notice the frail redhead that sat within a small group and yet had eyes that looked far too lonely for someone with people (people who seemingly cared no less) by his side. 

Tsuna knew that feeling all too well. 

Shortly after discovering his newfound curiosity in the redheaded boy that sat beside him, Tsuna learned that the boy's name: Enma Kozato. It was going to be his personal duty to befriend Enma and to remove that look from that pretty face… pretty? Well, Tsuna would deal with one thing at a time. 

He intended to befriend Enma Kozato… even at the expense of his nerves. 

  


* * *

* * *

  


"OUCH!" 

Everyone watched in amusement as the two boys collided. Everything happened in slow motion. One minute, the teacher was dismissing the class and, in the next, Tsuna and Enma were tripping over each other and knocking their heads together on their way down to the floor. 

"Well aren't we all lucky that it's the two of you whom are staying behind to clean the classroom." 

Lucky indeed. 

Tsuna smiled sheepishly and apologized as snickering classmates passed them by. His eyes landed on Enma, who was a little worse for wear and also apologizing. "I- I'm sorry." He stood, his hand rubbing at his throbbing forehead before he extended it to Enma. 

A soft smile slowly spread across Enma's face as he took Tsuna's hand and stood. "Thanks…" Scarlet irises focused at the floor but that smile remained. "I should be the one um- apologizing… I… wasn't paying attention when I got up." 

"Oh, no, I wasn't really watching-" 

"I'm sure I just-" 

Tsuna and Enma exchanged glances before laughing at their botched attempts to take sole blame for their earlier fall. 

"Well… I guess we can just say that neither of us were really paying attention." Tsuna smiled as he straightened the desk closest to him. 

"Ah, yea… things like this happen to me all the time… I'm kind of clumsy." 

"Me too! My godfather has been trying to break the habit out of me since I was a kid." It worked to a certain degree. He was never clumsy when he fought or when he was serious about something but both of those things happened on very rare occasions. 

A slender red eyebrow rose. "My Spartan uncle is the same. Even though he's kind of clumsy too, he's like, this invincible stuntman so… yea." 

Tsuna's face twisted curiously… a Spartan uncle that was an invincible stunt man…? Sounded like someone he knew… 

Enma smiled. "I know, sounds crazy right? But he's been like that since I was little and he used to train me until I was all beaten down and tired… he's funny though." 

Chestnut locks shook to and fro as Tsuna waved his hand dismissively. "No, no, I can believe that. My godfather was in the military or something- he's crazy strong. When I was younger he tricked me into training with him on the weekends and he wipes the floor with me every Saturday." He shuddered at the memory. "I definitely understand where you're coming." 

Enma nodded briefly. "But all of that doesn't matter when it comes down to it- the training I mean. We still get beat up and picked on." 

Amber irises widened in surprise. "You know?" 

"Yeah… I- um- I saw them bothering you once and I was gonna say something but then that guy, the one with the platinum blond hair, he came to help you." Enma glanced at Tsuna, scarlet eyes meeting ember. "How come you don't fight back?" 

"Well…" There were a lot of reasons why Tsuna didn't fight back, at least, reasons that he'd rationalized to himself. 

Not liking violence was at the top of the list. He didn't think solving violent attacks by using more violence would fix anything. People would still not like him and they would still talk about him whether or not he fought back. Fighting just wasn't for him and he'd prefer to take the brief beating. More so considering no pain compared to that of sparring with his godfather, Reborn. 

It didn't even come close. 

Even so, Tsuna felt as though he had an unfair advantage. He'd had lessons from his godfather who was, to say the least, recognized across the globe for his skills as a fighter and militant man. When he looked at and evaluated his own skills, he could easily take on five or six guys twice his size and leave with barely a scratch on him… so taking action against the bullies at school wasn't wise. It wouldn't be fair and Tsuna didn't like when things were at an unfair advantage. 

Last but not least, he couldn't imagine who would take the beatings and taunts if not him… well, Enma it seemed but that still wasn't fair. He'd probably have to do something about that. 

"I don't fight back because I don't like violence. I know how to fight but I don't think it'd solve anything… I guess I'm just not one of those people, you know? It pisses my godfather off." He laughed nervously and stared at his feet. Even to himself, Tsuna knew he sounded lame. 

"It's the same for me." Enma smiled but it didn't quite touch his eyes. "I guess that means we're the martyrs of Namimori." 

"Yeah…" It was a sad truth, one that linked them and confirmed what Tsuna had only speculated. 

"Um… we should probably start cleaning but- but after, do you wanna go get something to eat with me? I didn't get lunch today so…" 

Tsuna beamed. "Sure. I didn't have lunch either." Because Gokudera and Yamamoto had gotten chased around by Hibari and, in the chaos, his lunch had gotten trampled. It was a shame really because he'd missed breakfast (and he thanked Lambo, I-Pin, and Fuuta for that) so he'd been looking forward to lunch. 

"I'll start over in the corner then." With a soft smile, Enma quickly got to work. 

And thus a new friendship was born. 

  
  


* * *

**II.**

* * *

  


There were a lot of things in life that were meant to be feared. 

A great bulk of those things were on a mental list that Tsuna had compiled as the years moved forward. Some of his fears were petty (his fear of ants he considered very petty but he couldn't help it because he knew, without a doubt, that if ants evolved and formed a functioning system of communication between colonies, they could annihilate him and anyone else in their path). Some of his fears were logical (his fear of disappointing those near and dear to him was a legit fear to have for a teenager who highly valued his family and close relationships). And some of his fears were ordinary (everyone feared death). 

Tsuna didn't exactly know how to classify his unyielding fear of all things supernatural. 

He blamed Reborn for that particular phobia. 

Never would he forget being seven years old, waking in the middle of the night and stumbling out his bed –the pad of his foot touching something solid and cold. When he'd glanced down, a bit confused, he'd come face to face with a pair of claw-like hands and gray scaled-arms peeking from under his bed. He'd screamed so loud and pissed his pants as he bolted from of the room like hell was on his heels. When he reached his parent's room (frightened and quivering), he vowed never to return to his own. He'd slept with Dino for five solid months before he'd gathered the courage to make Dino sleep in his room with him until he could handle it by himself. 

They told him that it was supposed to be a joke, a funny one no less, that was well played on their adorable seven year old child but Tsuna didn't buy it. He _knew_ that there was a monster under his bed. It took years to convince him otherwise. 

Tsuna, to this very day, believed them all to have a twisted sense of humor. 

But that "joke" in no way compared to the second time that Reborn tried his hand at pulling an "innocent" prank. 

Waking up to arms reaching from under his bed was far better than waking in the middle of the night to a- a thing staring at him with glowing eyes from the closet. Seeing it move and open the closet door to reveal a seemingly shredded body with a face reminiscent to death itself had nearly given child Tsuna a heart attack. He'd fainted, pissed his pants, and couldn't sleep in his room for a full year and a half. 

(Dino had enjoyed sharing his room with Tsuna during that year.) 

Tsuna would never forget those instances and knowing now that they were pranks pulled on him by his godfather did nothing to lighten his phobia of the supernatural. 

Scary movies, books, figures, dolls, shadows… they all gave him the overwhelming urge to crawl out of his skin or meld into the person nearest to him. That lingering dread that clawed at his gut at the mere mention of the supernatural never went away. 

Never. 

And there was no way around it. 

Now, was no different. 

Tsuna was absolutely possitive that Adelheid hated him. It was the only explanation that he could think of for the current turn of events. If she liked him (even if it was a tiny bit), then she wouldn't have forced him to partake in Enma's dare to investigate the legend of [**_Aka Manto_**](http://creepypasta.wikia.com/wiki/The_Aka_Manto_and_Inglip). He wouldn't be clinging helplessly to the back of Enma's jacket as he followed the boy through the darkened school corridors and towards the girl's bathroom. 

Tsuna was petrified and he couldn't decide which scared him more: Adelheid's issues with controlling her anger and then directing that energy towards him or the possibility of being mauled by a ghost. 

It was a tossup. 

"I'm sorry, Tsuna. I tried to talk her into picking someone else but when Addy makes up her mind-" 

"I know." Was Tsuna's quick and hushed response. 

He knew the girl –had known that she'd held a strong disdain for him since he'd befriended Enma three years ago but he'd thought they were making progress in overcoming that. He was wrong. But it wasn't Enma's fault. A wrathful Adelheid was a formidable foe and the only one who ever stood against her successfully was Hibari… who wasn't present. 

That matter aside, they couldn't waste time with idle chatter. Not now. 

If [**_Aka Manto_**](http://creepypasta.wikia.com/wiki/The_Aka_Manto_and_Inglip) was truly at their school, Tsuna didn't want the creature to be alerted of their presence. 

If he could, Tsuna would scream like a girl and he would hold no shame for doing so. He couldn't believe his luck. Couldn't believe that a friendly game of Truth or Dare was now his worst nightmare come to life. 

Ghost hunting… Never would he have chosen to go ghost hunting of his own accord. 

Never. 

There was nothing that he could do about their situation so he was going to hope and pray to any god that was willing to listen that nothing remotely scary happened while they called out to [**_Aka Manto_**](http://creepypasta.wikia.com/wiki/The_Aka_Manto_and_Inglip) in the last stall of the girl's bathroom. 

In the dark. 

Tsuna would be lucky if he didn't faint. 

Enma stopped walking and Tsuna chanced a glance at their surroundings. They were outside of the first floor girl's bathroom. "Just hold onto me, okay." 

Tsuna nodded as he held tight to Enma's arm and followed the boy into the bathroom and down to the last stall. When they were both inside, Tsuna cringed at the sound of Enma locking the door. 

"Um… I'm not really sure how this works but-" 

"WAIT! I mean… wait!" Panic laced Tsuna's tone as he clutched at what he sorely hoped was Enma's shoulders. "Can we just say that you did this but not actually do it?" Because he didn't want to test or upset any potential poltergeist. 

What if they were tempting the spirits or provoking them? 

What if they made them angry? 

Worse: what if [**_Aka Manto_**](http://creepypasta.wikia.com/wiki/The_Aka_Manto_and_Inglip) was there? Tsuna knew for certain that he wouldn't live a full life if he had to ponder about all of those 'what ifs' on a daily basis. 

Enma stared at Tsuna's silhouette, a smile touching his face. He wasn't positive but he had a strong feeling that Tsuna was afraid of- "Ghosts… Are you afraid of ghosts?" 

Trembles wracked Tsuna's lithe body at the mention of such creatures and he pressed himself closer to Enma. "Yes!" His reply was muffled by Enma's shirt but he was sure that his friend had heard him clearly. 

"No way?!" Slim shoulders shook as Enma laughed. "Of all the things-" 

"Shut it! It's not my fault that my godfather has an awful sense of humor." Were they not submerged in darkness, Enma would be able to see Tsuna's pursed lips and knitted brow. "Let's just talk about something else please?" 

"Hmm…" There were actually a lot of things that Enma wanted to know about Tsuna and now was a better time than any other. It was very rare that they ever had a real moment alone and when they did, Enma always learned something new about Tsuna… "What do you want to talk about?" 

Tsuna moved his head and glanced at what he hoped to be Enma's face. "Can we leave here first?" 

"Yea. We can go-" 

But Tsuna had fled the bathroom as soon as an affirmative was uttered. 

Enma laughed as he too left the bathroom. 

A hand slowly lifted from the bowls of the toilet bowl. With a curt wave as to say goodbye, it retreated. 

  


* * *

* * *

  


He was hyperventilating. He was trying so hard to breathe but the muscles in his throat were constricting and tightening with every staggered grasp at air he attempted to make. 

Tsuna was panicking. 

"Hey… Hey, try to breathe." Enma's hand was moving against Tsuna's back in tantalizing circles. 

It wasn't helping. "Can't… Can't… scared…" Tsuna rasped in between ragged inhales and exhales. 

Enma leaned forward, lips gingerly touching Tsuna's shoulder. "Just follow me okay." 

A nod was all the acknowledgement that Tsuna was capable of as he panted and gasped and mentally clawed at his mind in hopes of kick starting a normal breathing regime. But Enma was there. He was pressed to his side, hand warm and fluttering over his lower back as he attempted to encourage Tsuna to breathe. 

"In…" Another light kiss to a t-shirt clad shoulder. "Out…" Kiss. The repetitive mantra of inhale-kiss-exhale-kiss persisted. 

Tsuna's mind focused on the warm lips pressing to his shoulder, the nape of his neck, the space just below his ear… his breathing took on the pattern of inhale-exhale that Enma had set for him. In a sluggish fashion, he was regaining himself. His chest heaved lightly, his ragged breathing was smoothing into something resembling normalcy. His eyes were squeezed shut as he focused. 

Enma's heated hand. Enma's words. Enma's mouth ghosting over his feverish flesh. 

"There you go. That's it." Enma's tone was soothing. Careful. He eased them onto the sidewalk, Tsuna seated between his parted legs with his knees drawn up to his chest as he breathed easily. "We're outside and we're under a lamp so everything should be okay." 

Tsuna could hear the smile in Enma's voice and it calmed him considerably. He'd just freaked out and Enma didn't seem any different towards him over that small fact. 

"Thanks." The word was uttered softly as Tsuna chewed on his bottom lip and leaned against Enma. He _hated_ ghost. 

"I'm still sorry about this." Enma still felt awful about Tsuna being roped into -more so now that he knew about Tsuna's phobia. 

Tsuna wasn't upset, so it was easy for him to say with a soft smile, "This," he waved his hand, "This was nothing. Plus, we got to hang out and you ended up being my knight in shining armor." 

A deep flush colored ivory cheeks. "I try." 

They both managed a laugh as Tsuna stood up on shaky knees and turned to help Enma. As soon as Enma got on his feet they bumped heads and fell forward against the wall. Laughter filled the small space between them as Tsuna held tight to Enma's shoulders. "You were great." He placed a light kiss to the corner of Enma's mouth. 

"Thanks," Enma was surprised the word came out as strong as it had. 

Silence lapsed between them for several moments before Tsuna sighed, gaze shifting towards the sky. "What a night, huh?" 

Enma shrugged. "It could've been worse?" 

"How?" Because Tsuna couldn't imagine how their night could have gotten any worse than it was. 

"Well, we could've actually saw a ghost or a spirit…" 

A shudder shot down his spine as he stared into bright red eyes. That certainly would've been awful. "Lucky us!" 

Enma nodded. "I guess this means we can head back now." 

Tsuna shook his head in agreement and grasped Enma's hand. He tugged him away from the wall, their fingers laced as they walked down the street. 

Stopping not too far behind them was a woman. When she turned, a white face mask covered her mouth but the [**_slits_ **](http://www.scaryforkids.com/kuchisake-onna/)that touched her crinkled eyes were an indication of her smile. She'd almost had them. 

  


* * *

  
**END**  


**Author's Note:**

> Be sure to click the **bold** /underlined/ _italicized_ words if you want to know more about those ghosts!!! But the rush on this one definitely goes out to [artistic18](http://archiveofourown.org/users/artistic18/pseuds/artistic18) for reminding me of my KHR fandom feels (all of the love for you)!
> 
> Anywho, thanks so much for reading and, if you dug it, don't hesitate to drop me a line or punch that kudos button!


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